In 1999, Soul Calibur won almost complete universal acclaim for being the best 3D fighter of its generation, and a game which was regarded as the pinnacle of the 3D fighting genre (if not the entire fighting genre). It was always going to be difficult for Soul Calibur 2 to emulate the acclaim and impact of its predecessor. Indeed, it hasn't been able to for several reasons. It has been a little overshadowed by VF4 Evolution, which offers an extremely deep fighting system, and it has also largely stuck to the same formula, with the fighting system of each character mainly refined a little, rather than revolutionised.

Although Soul Calibur was regarded so highly by critics and fight fans alike, it was still a game that was often unfairly labelled as a button basher. This was partly due to the fast and frantic nature of the game, those who were trying to get good at the game would still sometimes lose to button bashers, even after months of practice. Trying to deliberately time your actions without a deep and active understanding of your character's moves may not work against a player who bashes the hell out of the controls. However, although the game is very accessible, this shouldn't be mistaken for the game having a gentle and easy learning curve.

Furthermore, people should not mistake the open accessibility of the Calibur games to mean they lack depth, as in truth, when it comes to fighting games, Soul Calibur 2 is only second to the genre defining Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution in the depth stakes. Those who persist in viewing either of the Caliburs as shallow, button bashing games would be wise to look more closely at their own gaming skills and ability as lacking depth. Although it takes a long time and considerable effort to become truly good at the game, once you are suitably proficient, button bashers simply don't stand a chance.

Make no mistake, Soul Calibur 2 is a game of immense skill and dexterity, and one that requires the player to be dedicated in honing and practicing their skills for a considerable amount of time before they can consider themselves to be good at the game. Even learning to utilise one character very effectively will take at least a couple months of dedicated practice; and to truly master, much, much longer. On Soul Calibur, even after years of playing as one character, expert players still sometimes discover new combo patterns which they can work into their fighting routines. Soul Calibur 2 retains essentially the same combat engine and therefore the same possibilities for players to discover hidden subtleties about their chosen fighter, even hundreds or even thousands of hours into the game.

The 20 (15 available from the beginning, 5 unlockable) characters in the game possess greatly differing fighting styles, weapons, speed and range. All these varying factors combine to make combatants of a particular style, flair and individuality, and it is the sheer variety and choice of fighters the game offers that will not only astound newcomers to the game, but will give dedicated fighting fans plenty of scope for choosing the kind of character that suits them.

In Soul Calibur 2, Namco have painstakingly balanced each character's abilities, which becomes increasingly apparent through extended play, and in spite of the wide variety of fighting styles in the game, Soul Calibur 2 rarely, if ever, feels imbalanced. Go to various Tokyo arcades and you will find that expert challengers are using most (if not all) of the characters; surely a testament to the game that it possesses a wonderfully balanced combat engine for almost all characters (although one or two of the characters are a little weaker than the others).

Some characters require players to play in a more all-round sense, and other characters are very much geared towards attack. Players who are natural turtlers (overly cautious running away types) will want to stay away from using Talim or Taki, for example. As both are fast and have the potential for large combos, they are built purely for attack. That's where the similarities between them ends though, as Taki and Talim require completely different mindsets from the players that use either of them. Expert Taki players will really utilise her agility and speed of movement and have a mastery of the 8-way run, so will be particularly useful at moving around opponent's attacks rather than simply blocking them, as opposed to Talim, who in contrast, requires a more direct approach from the player. Voldo is a particularly odd character, not only in design but also in playing style. His unpredictable move range and the fact that he can perform a variety of moves while in the several different stances he has, means that for a player to get good at using him, they need to be able to think laterally and really have the ability to mix up their moves with purpose (there are still many players that can get too easily stuck into a routine of moves and combos. These types should avoid using Voldo). Voldo is a true master's character, because only the best players can learn to really effectively exploit his unpredictable nature.

The 8-way run adds a further tactical dimension into the mix. The inclusion of the 8-way run means that players not only have to learn to understand the speed and range of their own moves, but also their opponents. In a defensive sense, more skilful players will learn to move around certain attacks (such as ones that only connect if the players are directly facing each other), and from an attacking point of view, better players will know instinctively to use the moves which connect in a wider arc when appropriate.

The inclusion of parries also adds further depth to the defensive side of the game, and play an integral part in matches between advanced players. These are executed by a tap of the block button coupled with either a tap forward of the stick (for parrying higher or mid attacks) or a tap back (for parrying and lower and mid attacks) and must be timed to just as the opposing players attack is about to strike. If a player successfully parries an opponent, that player has a free hit on his/her opponent, and all the opponent can do in response is parry back. It is particularly enthralling to be involved in, or watch a multiple parry exchange between 2 advanced players.

Having friends who are prepared to learn with you can and will make the experience of playing the game all the more deeper and rewarding. In fact, there are few games in any genre that can claim to be as rewarding as Soul Calibur 2. Like its predecessor and VF4 Evolution, it is simply amazing how much players can learn from each other through competitive play, and it remains the only way to truly and effectively learn the game and measure one's progress. Few games can compare with the psychology and intensity of a Soul Calibur 2 match between 2 learned opponents. Human ompetition is also immensely important from the point of view of learning the game properly, as while the AI has improved immensely from that of Soul Calibur 1, it still remains a little inadequate on most difficulty settings and doesn't mimic the weaknesses and strengths, nor the varying styles of human opponents.

Where does the Xbox version differ from the other home formats? In terms of how it plays, not at all, barring the inclusion of the exclusive bonus character Spawn. In terms of his character background, Spawn is undoubtedly out of place in the Soul Calibur universe (him being an ex-CIA agent), however in an aesthetic sense he is undoubtedly the least "out of place" character of all the exclusive characters in each of the home versions (please refer to the Gamecube and PS2 reviews for an assessment of their respective exclusive character). Namco have put good work into making his combat system not only a very unique one, but also a very effective one.

Graphically, the Xbox version has pretty noticeable improvements from its arcade counterpart, with sharper character models and slightly more spectacular looking backgrounds (particularly running in 720p, where the quality of the picture is comparable to it running on a PC monitor). It is also the slight graphical superior of the other two home versions, although the difference is somewhat negligible. Sonically, things are also wonderful, as the game fully supports 5.1 and utilises this feature well, with the beautifully composed tunes sounding even more captivating, and the weapon noises and voices sounding even more chunky and realistic.

Those with the Xbox version will undoubtedly want to know the appropriate control methods with which to play the game. For those who don't want the pay the high cost of importing an arcade stick, thankfully, the Xbox pad provides adequate control, although not perfect, with the A button mapped to block, the X button being for horizontal attacks, the Y button being for vertical attacks and the B button being for kicks. Those who seek the ideal control set-up will want to invest in an arcade stick, although there has been no official Soul Calibur 2 stick released on the Xbox (unlike for the GC and PS2). People wishing to use a stick for the game have two choices: the Fighting stick EX or the Dead or Alive 3 stick. Both sticks offer exactly the same level of control, with exactly the same button placements and button size (although the DOA3 stick had only 4 buttons as opposed to the 8 buttons that the Fighting EX stick has). Both sticks are equally excellent for Soul Calibur, and nearly mimic the game's arcade setup, although neither are quite as good as the official Soul Calibur 2 stick due to the smaller buttons that both sticks possess. It may sound like a small point, but it really does make a difference, especially to more dedicated players.

Is Soul Calibur 2 a better game than its predecessor? The answer is yes, although it unfortunately isn't an emphatic one. Namco have upset many of their hardcore following by omitting 3 (lizardman, Rock, Hwang) of the characters from the last game. The fact that each of the omitted characters features in weapons master mode (for a more detailed description of Weapon master mode, please refer to the Gamecube review of this game) really adds insult to injury for fans of the omitted characters.

Where the game does improve upon its predecessor, is in the beefing up of each of the retained fighters. Each of the characters has retained the core-fighting engine of the previous game, meaning that Soul Calibur veterans can start playing this game as if they were playing the original. However, each character has been stripped of a few useless moves as well as having a couple of new moves (which suffice to say are very effective and welcome additions). Also, the inclusions of newer characters like Talim and Cassandra, and to a lesser extent Raphael and Yunsung, have enriched the game with even more intriguing and exotic weapons and fighting styles.

Soul Calibur 2, like its predecessor, is a game which gamers can, and will, enjoy. There's plenty of incentive here for those who are more interested in a button mashing fest, as it's spectacularly beautiful looking, with wonderfully detailed, animated and solid character models, and will entice players to keep on playing. Conversely, it offers the more dedicated players, who want to explore the depths of its combat system, almost endless scope and gameplay.